Flanders was not a country, but rather a "medieval principality" as the Brittanica puts it. In 862 Charlemagne appointed Baldwin l as the first count of Flanders. The area, which shrank and expanded over time, lasted until 1369. It became independant and had a life of its own. The early Baldwins encouaged the cloth industry which gave to the area a vibrant economy. A Fleming was not a member of an ethnic group, but rather the citizen of a multi-ethnic state, though French was the language of choice. The large group of Carpentiers in Flanders were probably Frankish or French in origins, although a Norman origin is also possible. In the later years of the areas history France wanted to control the area, and conflict erupted. England also wanted to rule France and certainly keep the Normandy area. England and Flanders, or Hainaut as it was called, allied themselves against the French. Alas, much that was once Flanders became France, as did the Duchy of Normandy itself. Deeply connected to all this was the wool trade. Wool was produced in England, shipped to Flanders where it was made into cloth, then subsequently exported it all through Europe. England literally subsisted on her wool exports and the Flemings lived on the products on the other end. Madly buying, selling, laughing and thriving in the midst of this was the curious and remarkable Carpenter,Charpenter, Carpentier, Charpentier family who appropriately chose the globe as their symbol. Bruce E. Carpenter